


Christmas Mess

by lucybun



Series: And the Hits Verse [4]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Christmas Party, Established Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-02
Updated: 2020-12-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:15:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27832126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucybun/pseuds/lucybun
Summary: Danny is worried about Steve having a difficult Christmas, so he arranges a special surprise. Part of my And the Hits verse, but it can probably stand alone.
Relationships: Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams
Series: And the Hits Verse [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2024804
Comments: 17
Kudos: 93





	Christmas Mess

**Author's Note:**

> Another quick, fluffy holiday fic. I've only given this a quick read-through, so forgive any mistakes and feel free to kindly point them out. Kudos and comments guarantee you a place on the nice list!

By the weekend after Thanksgiving, Danny was in full Christmas mode, planning activities for when his family arrived and making lists of all the food he wanted to cook. He was nearly gleeful with it, but he had to admit that it was tempered by his concern for his partner. There were still so many losses for Steve to grieve, and grief felt so much more painful and heavy during the holidays. He loved the man so much, so he was determined to help Steve get through the season, just like Steve was helping him to get through it by bringing his family over from Jersey. 

As usual, the biggest issue was Doris. She had been, in his humble opinion, a piece of shit human being, but that didn’t mean his partner wouldn’t miss her this time of year. Steve hadn’t had many Christmases with his mother, truth be told, but that didn’t matter. The man wouldn’t be mourning the past so much as mourning the loss of any future holidays, mourning the loss of the chance to make things right, to bring Doris back into the family and finally have his mom back. Danny, in the deepest recesses of his mind that he would never share with anyone, thought that whatever Doris had been when Steve and Mary were young was just one more layer of lies. Steve’s “mom” was just a cover, and that’s all she’d ever been. Her husband, her kids, had all been part of the job, and her “death” was a chance to shed that skin and go back to the life she wanted. He was afraid that Steve thought the same thing, and Danny didn’t want that to cast a pall over what should be the best holiday they’d ever had. So, he decided to go with what had worked at Thanksgiving and find some sort of happy memory for Steve to focus on instead.

Mary was no help this time. She hadn’t really had the chance to spend Christmastime with Steve since they were separated, and they’d really only talked briefly on the phone on Christmas Day when he was able to call. He’d always been on a mission or on a ship or a base between missions, so even a call hadn’t been possible sometimes. Danny saw the sadness in Mary’s eyes when she thought about it — sadness and regret. All he could do was wrap her in his arms and whisper kind words about how she and Steve were together, were closer than ever now, and wasn’t that wonderful? She nodded and sniffed into Danny’s shoulder, squeezing him gently and thanking him before pulling away and looking for a tissue. He was no further along in his quest, but he thought maybe he’d headed off a potential Christmas blues meltdown for Mary. 

He went to bed that night distracted and a little irritated with himself. He’d known Steve over a decade, this shouldn’t be so freaking hard. Maybe he should just find a turkey dinner MRE or send Steve out to Pearl and let him have his meal on base. That was nostalgia in Steve’s book, that was comfort. And the longer that he lay there thinking about it, he started to see how true that was. For a long time, the navy had been Steve’s family. Danny wasn’t crazy about the idea that was bubbling in his brain, but he was already fairly certain what he was going to do. 

It took some coordination, calling in way too many favors, and a whole lot of perseverance, but by the second week of December everything was ready. There was no way he could do what he had planned after his family arrived, so Steve would just have to deal with an early celebration. With the amount of booze he’d bought, he doubted anyone would care. 

Finally, the day arrived. He was pretty sure that Steve knew something was up, but he hadn’t given Danny any guff about it yet. Maybe he was trying, for once in his life, to enjoy a surprise. Maybe he just didn’t want to annoy Danny, which was an alarming thought actually. Whatever the reason, when Junior showed up to drag Steve out to the shooting range on a Saturday afternoon, he gave Danny a knowing look, a lovingly knowing look, and went along with it. 

So when they came back through the front door a few hours later, laughing at something Tani had said last week, Steve wasn’t that surprised to see the hallway and foyer decorated. He was a little bemused at how… not beautiful the decorations were because that didn’t seem like Danny, but the man probably just hadn’t had time to do much more. What did surprise him though, was the sound of several voices coming from the dining room that they never really used. His partner must’ve heard him and Junior coming in because he suddenly appeared in front of them, grinning and delighted. God, Steve loved it when Danny looked like that, so he couldn’t resist grabbing him and kissing him thoroughly. That just made Danny grin harder, which just made Steve want to haul him off to their room, but he refused to ruin Danny’s surprise. Besides, he really wanted to know what was going on. He was still holding the smaller man and cupping his face when he heard a very distinct voice. Turning toward the sound then back at his partner, he let his utter shock show on his face. Danny deserved that reward, at the very least.

Nudging Steve slightly, Danny nodded toward the dining room and urged, “Go on, go on. Just remember that I’m not cleaning up any vomit or repairing any structural damage to the house.” He was smirking like he was joking, but he really, really wasn’t. Smacking another kiss on his partner’s cheek, Steve finally ducked into the dining room. The room went silent for about three seconds before everyone shouted, “Merry Christmas, Smooth Dog!” The man seemed frozen in place until Gutches stood up from the table and crushed him in a tight embrace. When he finally let go, Steve swallowed past the lump in his throat and looked around the room. Besides Gutches, Frank Bama was there, Lincoln, Quinn, Junior, Thomas Magnum, Rick Wright, and a couple of the guys he’d helped train who were stationed at Pearl, too. They weren’t all navy, but they’d all dedicated their lives to the military at one point or another, and that’s what counted right then.

There was a lot of manly hugging and backslapping before Steve managed to pay attention to the rest of the room. In the corner was the shittiest, saddest plastic Christmas tree he’d ever seen, complete with old, shedding tinsel and a star on top that looked like it had been chewed by a dog at some point. Along the side wall, there was a buffet table with several large, beat-up chafing dishes, and he suddenly recognized the scent coming from them. He walked over and lifted each lid, laughing and looking back at Danny. It was an authentic navy Christmas feast, complete with dry turkey, bland stuffing, and green bean casserole. It all looked kind of gross, but it was making Steve’s mouth water. This was the Christmas dinner he’d had for so many years. This was his tradition, right down to the pathetic tree and busted decorations that were so much like what he’d seen in every mess hall during the holidays. He was amazed that Danny had not only figured that out but had managed to pull all of this together. The man was still watching from out in the hallway, smiling and happy because Steve was smiling and happy 

He sauntered back to his partner, to the man who had done all of this for him. _For him_. “Danny, man, how did you manage this? Where did you even get the food?”

Danny put on his best poker face. “It’s classified.” Steve narrowed his eyes and looked like he was about to thump the other man’s ear, but the detective still wasn’t going to tell him everything he’d had to do to pull the party together. “Hey, just call it Christmas magic. I may owe somebody Grace’s first born, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” With that, he made a shooing motion and ordered Steve to go enjoy himself. “There’s plenty of beer and liquor, but don’t have too much fun. I’m not gonna nurse you through a hangover tomorrow.” That was a complete lie, and Steve knew it, but he also knew better than to call Danny on it. 

“Okay, Danno. You’re not going to stay?”

“Nah. I’m gonna let you and your little battalion eat your crappy food and drink too much and tell a bunch of bullshit stories without me. I’m sure you’ll manage.” He said it with a smile, and it was a genuine one. He knew that this aspect of Steve’s life wasn’t something he could really share in, but he was okay with that now. A year ago, it might’ve been a different story, but he was content and confident enough in his place in Steve’s life that he wasn’t threatened by being an outsider once in a while. 

“Danny. This is… I don’t even know what to say. You’re – ah, fuck it.” He couldn’t find the words, so he clutched the smaller man to his chest and kissed him deep and wet and sweet instead. When they finally parted for air, he was panting and gazing at Danny like he was the answer to the meaning of life. As far as Steve was concerned, maybe he was. “Thank you. I love you. You’re amazing.”

Danny smiled and ducked his head, flushing at the praise. “Yeah, yeah.” Pushing Steve gently, he herded him back into the party. “Go have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” 

Steve smiled and stepped back into the fold of the already raucous group, turning back one last time to gaze at his partner. “Merry Christmas, Danno.”

Danny huffed a laugh. “Yeah, merry Christmas, ya filthy animal.” He took one last moment to commit the sight of a happy, laughing, elated Steve to memory before heading upstairs.

Mission accomplished.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I have no idea what actual holiday meals and decorations are like in the military. I expect they're much nicer than this story makes them seem. Also, please forgive the mandatory Home Alone reference. Thank y'all for reading!


End file.
